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Land of Fish

Profile image of Eduardo WilliamsEduardo Williams

2020, Ancient Mesoamerica

https://doi.org/10.1017/S0956536120000115
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36 pages

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Abstract

This article deals with the cultural activities linked to subsistence in aquatic environments (fishing, hunting, gathering and manufacture) in Michoacán from ca. AD 1540 to the present. First I present an ethnohistorical account of aquatic landscapes and resources based on the major written sources from the 16th to the 19th centuries. Second, I discuss the extant ethnographic information about subsistence activities in the Lake Pátzcuaro Basin (Michoacán) during the 20th century. In the final section I discuss the archaeological implications of all the information presented here, through an ethnoarchaeological analysis of the subsistence strategies and the material culture associated with the aquatic lifeway in the study area. The main goal of this study is to provide bridging arguments for the reconstruction and interpretation (through analogy) of the archaeological assemblages associated with production and consumption activities in aquatic landscapes within the Tarascan region and elsewhere in Mesoamerica.

Key takeaways
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  1. Michoacán's aquatic lifeway, rooted in diverse resources, persisted from AD 1540 to the present.
  2. The study utilizes ethnohistorical and ethnographic data to analyze subsistence in the Lake Pátzcuaro Basin.
  3. Mesoamerican societies lacked domesticated livestock, leading to reliance on aquatic and nonagricultural resources.
  4. Fishing, hunting, gathering, and artifact manufacture are key subsistence strategies in the region.
  5. Environmental degradation threatens traditional practices and aquatic ecosystems, necessitating urgent research and preservation efforts.

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Related papers

AquaticResources-Ethnoarchaeology-LakeCuitzeo-Michoacan (2014)
Eduardo Williams

This study of subsistence activities (fishing, hunting, gathering, and manufacture) in the Lake Cuitzeo Basin underscores the value of ethnoarchaeology as a tool for reconstructing the ancient aquatic lifeway in the territory of the ancient Tarascan state, which flourished in an environment dominated by lakes, rivers, marshes, and other wetlands. Mesoamerica was the only civilization in the ancient world that lacked major domesticated sources of animal protein, such as cattle, pigs, and sheep. Therefore, the abundant wild aquatic species (fish, birds, reptiles, amphibians, insects, and plants, among others) played a strategic role in the diet and economy of most Mesoamerican cultures, including the Tarascans. Most of the activities, artifacts, and features linked with aquatic lifeways throughout Mesoamerica are difficult to detect in the archaeological record. As a result, we must rely on ethnographic and ethnohistorical perspectives like the ones discussed here to formulate analogies, in order to understand this important aspect of the ancient past.

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THE "LAND OF FISH" Discovering Ancient Michoacán's Aquatic Lifeway (2019)
Eduardo Williams

The "Land of Fish", 2019

The aquatic lifeway in Michoacán, Mexico, during the Protohistoric period. Cultural landscapes and activities linked to subsistence in aquatic environments. Ethnohistorical and Ethnoarchaeological perspectives.

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Aquatic Lifeway... Ethnoarchaeology (2014)
Eduardo Williams

This study of subsistence activities 1 (fishing, hunting, gathering and manufacture) in the Cuitzeo and Pátzcuaro lake basins (Michoacán, Western Mexico) underscores the value of ethnoarchaeology as a tool for reconstructing the ancient aquatic lifeway in the territory of the Protohistoric Tarascan state (ca. AD 1450-1530), which flourished in an environment dominated by lakes, rivers, swamps and marshes. Mesoamerica was the only civilization in the ancient world that lacked major domesticated sources of animal protein, such as cattle, pigs and sheep; therefore, abundant wild aquatic species (fish, birds, reptiles, amphibians, insects and plants, among others) all played strategic roles in the diet and economy of most Mesoamerican cultures, including the Tarascans. Most of the activities, artefacts and features linked to aquatic lifeways throughout Mesoamerica are difficult to detect in the archaeological record; thus, we must rely on ethnographic and ethnohistorical perspectives like the ones discussed here to formulate analogies in order to better understand this important aspect of Mexico's ancient past. The ethnographic, archaeological and ethnohistorical data discussed in this book help shed light on the cultural processes and the resulting archaeological correlates (i.e. artefacts and features) linked to aquatic subsistence in Michoacán. This information is vital for interpreting the archaeological record not only in the study area, but also in all those regions of West Mexico and elsewhere in Mesoamerica where lakes, rivers, marshes and streams offered their natural bounty for human exploitation.

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The Aztec Water Folk: Aquatic Lifeway in the Basin of Mexico (ca. 1570-1992)
Eduardo Williams

This paper explores the material culture and ecological environment of the Aztec "water folk", the men and women who worked in the lakes, rivers, marshes and streams in the Basin of Mexico. The emphasis of the study is on ethnohistory (primarily Bernardino de Sahagún) and ethnography (Jeffrey Parsons' fieldwork at Lake Texcoco in the 1990s). This will be published as a book chapter, together with "The Land of Fish" (also in Academia) and a section on saltmaking in Mesoamerica, with emphasis on cultural landscapes and archaeological assemblages.

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Testing the Waters: Tzeltal Maya Rituals, Reconnaissance, and Survey of Lakes in the Lacanhá Basin, Chiapas, Mexico
Justin Lowry

Journal of Maritime Archaeology, 2020

Ritual practices associated with bodies of water are well known and have been the focus of several research projects in Maya regions of Mexico. In the Northern Lowlands, for example, cenotes were and are important natural and cultural resources for prehispanic as well as for modern peoples. Based on our underwater archaeological research, we have found that ritual activities were present in other Maya regions, such as the Lacanhá River basin. The recovery of ceramic sherds in the lagoons in the area of Nueva Palestina, Ocosingo, Chiapas, and ethnographic studies here suggest a continuation of the ancient to modern ritual practices associated with bodies of water. This new interdisciplinary work also allows us to know more about the ancient inhabitants of the Lacanhá River basin where few systematic archaeological studies have been conducted. Resumen Las prácticas rituales asociadas a cuerpos de agua son bien conocidas y han sido el objeto de estudio de varios proyectos en la región Maya de México. En las Tierras Bajas del Norte, por ejemplo, los cenotes han sido y continúan siendo recursos naturales y culturales tanto para los antiguos mayas como para los actuales. Basados en nuestra investigación arqueológica, encontramos este tipo de actividades rituales en otras regiones más allá de la mencionada previamente, tal es el caso de la Cuenca del río Lacanhá. El hallazgo de tiestos cerámicos en las lagunas del área circundante a la población de Nueva Palestina, Ocosingo, Chiapas, aunados a los estudios etnográficos también realizados por este proyecto, nos sugieren una continuación de las antiguas prácticas culturales por parte de los pobladores actuales de la región. Este nuevo trabajo interdisciplinario también nos permite conocer más sobre los antiguos habitantes de la Cuenca del río Lacanhá donde pocos estudios arqueológicos sistemáticos se han llevado a cabo.

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Related topics

  • Ethnoarchaeology
  • Mesoamerican Archaeology
  • Mesoamerican Ethnohistory
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